Another Kerala college hit by morphing case; obscene images of female teachers, students circulated

Kollam: Another case of allegedly morphed and obscene images being circulated online has emerged from Kollam, with a complaint against a student of Punalur Polytechnic College. Police have registered an FIR after photographs of women teachers and students were allegedly altered and circulated, including through obscene websites.

The development came to light on Thursday, October 8. The mobile phone of the student named in the complaint has been taken into custody and is expected to be handed over to the police for further examination.

Punalur college student faces complaint

The complaint is against a fifth-semester student of Punalur Polytechnic College. He is accused of taking photographs of teachers and fellow students from his mobile phone, morphing them and allegedly sharing them on pornographic websites.

The complaint also alleges that the morphed images were sold through such websites to make money.

The student reportedly admitted during a discussion held at the college in the presence of parents that he had morphed the photographs. Following the incident, there has been a protest at the college demanding his suspension. The college has now decided to suspend the student.

Another case in Kerala

The Kollam case comes amid a series of complaints in Kerala involving the alleged digital manipulation and circulation of photographs of women.

In July, a third-year MBBS student of Thiruvananthapuram Government Medical College was booked in connection with the alleged morphing and online circulation of obscene images of fellow women students. With the latest FIRs in that case, the number of criminal cases against the accused rose to five.

A similar case was reported in September from Bharata Mata College, Thrikkakara. A second-year degree student was booked after allegedly digitally morphing photographs of fellow students and teachers and sharing them online.

The college dismissed the student after a disciplinary inquiry and handed over his mobile phone to the police.

Police invoked provisions including Section 67A of the Information Technology Act, which deals with transmission of sexually explicit material in electronic form, along with Section 79 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, relating to insulting the modesty of a woman, and Section 119(1)(b) of the Kerala Police Act. Possible POCSO-related aspects were also being examined in connected circumstances.

Police probe Telegram network

Investigators in the Thrikkakara case found that some of the manipulated images were allegedly being shared through private Telegram channels, including paid and premium groups where such material was traded or sold.

Police reports have also pointed to similar collections of morphed images in other districts, including Kottayam and Malappuram. The findings prompted a wider cyber investigation into whether the cases were linked.

A Special Investigation Team and cyber police expanded the probe, including efforts to obtain user-related information from Telegram. Investigators have also been tracking automated bots and AI-based image-morphing services allegedly used in the circulation of the material.